Divine Muse of Poetry

On November 12 the recitation contest Divine Muse of Poetry was held at South Ural State University where talented students showed their abilities to perform at the stage.

Why do people read and recite poems? Does it really influence their life? Poetry makes us feel and empathize as we see and understand the poet's soul. Poetry elevates the soul and instills a strong interest to beauty. Nowadays the time of a modern man is absorbed by what gives him food only for his mind, but not for his immortal soul. So in vanity our days pass, and we do not even have time to look at the beauty of this world. Or at least sit in a chair with a favorite book watching the development of the plot. In silence we comprehend peace; in reading the poems of a beloved poet we learn to sympathize his characters. Poetry gives us the ability to open heart, to see the feelings and the world through the eyes of other people. Images that we find in a poem can cause certain bright associations with a sense of joy, sympathy, sadness or inspiration.

This is the reason for the Department of Foreign languages of South Ural State University to hold the recitation contest Divine Muse of Poetry every year. Students can share their love to English and German poetry, enjoy the atmosphere of art, willing to become more confident in reciting in public.

“Our students are creative and talented. They carefully choose the poem or the song and think over their appearance and behavior on the stage. What they do is not just reciting a poem, it is a full performance of a real actor. They always surprise me with their original approach and ability to get into character. All of them are true connoisseurs of art, devoted to the beauty of poetry and music in English,” said Elena Kiryakova, one of the organisers of the contest.

This year the contest took part on November 12 at the university complex Sigma. There were 20 contestants with different poems and songs. The audience could enjoy the poems by Edgar Allan Poe (performed by Dennis Bezmenov), William Brighty Rands (performed by Alexandre Oskolkov), Rudyard Kipling (performed by Olga Pastushkova), William H. Davies (performed by Oxana Rachilova), and the songs by Elton John (performed by Yan Pakhomov and Ilya Platonov), Cranberries (performed by Kirill Slitikov), Little Mix (performed by Kseniya Nuretdinova). One of the most unusual performances was reciting the extract from Martin Luther King's speech «I Have a Dream» (performed by Arina Shagibalova).

Elena Shraiber, PhD, one of the organisers of the contest explains the purpose of the contest:

“We hold the contest for the 5th time. Our aim is to increase interest in the study of foreign languages, reveal creativity of our students and promote dialogue of cultures. Every year we have students from different countries taking part in our contest. This year our debutants are foreign students from Syria and Sri Lanka”.

Sanjana Probod from Sri Lanka (Foundation program of SUSU), Shakhit Mulkham from Syria (School of Electronic Engineering and Computer Science) and Dennis Polutonov performed a song “House of the Rising Sun” by the Animals and got the second prize of the contest.

Shakhit Mulkham tells about music and study at SUSU:

“I like to study here as I meet people from many countries and cultures speaking different languages. I am happy to play music as we organise a band and take in many festivals and contests. Music helps me to study as it is an excellent way to get relaxed after a hard day at the university”.

“I decided to study the Russian language because in Sri Lanka there are lots of opportunities for people knowing foreign languages. When I visited our embassy, I learnt about the university and came to Chelyabinsk. For the first time in my life I saw snow! Taking part in the contest is a very nice opportunity to communicate with people who love music and poetry,” said Sanjana Probod.

The winners of the contest got certificates and lots of applause from fascinated audience. The organisers look forward to welcome and see new talented contestants next year.

Valentina Metelyova, photo by Evgeniya Muravyova
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